The Trio and An Alternate End to POA
by Obsessed With 52
Summary: Part 1 of the Trio Series. Ron has a conversation with one of his brothers that has consequences for himself, Hermione, and the Prisoner of Azkaban. I don't own Harry Potter. R/Hr.
1. A Brother's Advice

_**A/N: This begins during the chapter The Quidditch Final.**_

Chapter One: A Brother's Advice

It was April and a fourteen-year-old boy was looking for someone. Ronald Weasley was not looking for either of his best friends: Harry Potter or Hermione Granger. Instead he was looking for his brother – Percy, to be exact. Ron was not surprised to find him in the Library as Percy was studying for his N.E.W.T.'s (Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Tests). Ron took a deep breath and bravely approached his third eldest brother.

'Percy,' he whispered, 'I know you're busy, but I need your advice, but I can't discuss it here and I can't ask Fred and George.'

Percy looked up at Ron and saw the look on his brother's face and with a hunch he knew what Ron wanted to talk about, he said, 'It's fine, Ron, I need a break anyway. Why don't we discuss this in my private room? It's one of the benefits of being Head Boy.'

Ron gave a nervous nod and Percy packed his things meticulously. They then walked back to Gryffindor Tower and to Percy's private room.

'Wow, Percy, it's almost worth being Head Boy if you have all this to yourself,' said Ron nervously as he took in the impressive surroundings. Percy ignored Ron's comment and waited patiently for Ron to begin.

'I, um, need your help, but before I tell you, I need you to promise me that you won't tell Fred and George,' said Ron.

'I promise,' Percy replied.

'Right, well, it's Hermione, I like her – more than a best friend and I have no clue what to do and I'm scared she's gonna find out and it'll be horrible, she'll either laugh at me, or worse, I'll lose her friendship,' he said sadly.

'How long have you felt this way?' said Percy curiously.

Ron thought for a moment and said, 'Probably the moment I met her, but I only realised it last year when I saw her after she was petrified. She looked so lifeless and I felt horrible, like it was my fault, I should've been there and not let her go off on her own. I missed her like crazy, I wanted to hear her voice, feel her presence. I mean she's beautiful, not just on the outside but the inside as well, she's amazing to put up with a git like me and why would she like me back, I've been such a twat to her …'

Percy had listened to every word his youngest had said, Ron was looking at him like a drowning man in need of buoyancy, and he said, 'You love her.'

'Yes,' said Ron.

'Well, it's about time you figured it out. The question is; what are you going to do about it?'

'That's why I'm here, you're the only one of my brothers who, one; won't take the piss, two; is actually here, and three; actually has a girlfriend,' said Ron thoughtfully.

Percy thought for a moment or two and said, 'Right, my advice is this: one; start acting more chivalrous to her, carry her bag for her, open and hold open doors for her, let her pass in front of you, pour her drink for her, try and make her laugh, okay? Do as much as you can to help her, and, secondly, perhaps most importantly, don't argue with her. Then, when the time is right, ask her to be your girlfriend.'

'Er, right, I can do that, but how will I know when the time is right?' said Ron.

'Trust me, Ron, you'll know when it's right,' Percy said confidently.

'What if she says no?' said Ron.

'Hermione is a nice enough girl to be honest with you ,and at the very least will still want to be friends and, don't worry about things being awkward, because she'll know just how much she means to you and she'll know that you'll always be there for her,' said Percy soothingly.

Ron thought about Percy's words and decided it was worth a try, if it meant there was a chance he could be with Hermione and be happy, the risk would be worth it.

'Okay, thanks a lot, Percy, I'm going to do it, wish me luck,' said Ron bracingly.

'Good luck, Ron, but I don't think you'll need it,' said Percy confidently once more as Ron left.


	2. An Act of Love

_**A/N: This chapter takes place in The Quidditch Final.**_

Chapter Two: An Act of Love

Ron's talk with Percy was still going through his mind even though he had decided he would do whatever he could for Hermione. He had already spent time in the Library working on Buckbeak's appeal, as well as carrying her bag and complimenting her to make up for being so horrible to her this year. Hermione had been, to say the least, surprised, but, pleased with Ron's kindnesses and they were often seen in each other's company without arguing which came as a shock to everyone who wasn't Percy. Ron entered the Gryffindor common room to find Hermione working feverishly, only pausing to check her facts. Ron guessed she was working on Arithmancy and he watched her as she worked. She stopped to yawn, stretch, and then rub her own shoulder. Ron then had what he would call a rare brainwave and hoped Hermione wouldn't hex him for it. He walked up behind her but hoping he wasn't in her light to read over her shoulder.

'What do you want, Ron?' she asked wearily.

'_You,' _he thought, but he said, 'Nothing, I just came over to see if you were okay.'

'Oh, I'm fine, loads to do, that's all,' she replied unable to keep the tiredness out her voice.

'I can see that, Hermione – don't worry, I'm not going to ask you how you're doing all this, I'm sure you'll tell me eventually, right?' he said gently.

'Um, maybe, have you finished your homework?' she replied in typical Hermione fashion.

'Yeah, and I've almost finished Buckbeak's appeal for Hagrid.'

'Good, I'm glad you're starting to take school seriously, and I'm sure Hagrid will appreciate all you're doing for him and Buckbeak,' said Hermione, smiling.

'Hermione, I'm still really sorry for being such a git to you this year, especially with your heavy workload, can I do something nice for you?'

'Such as?' said Hermione.

'Do you trust me?'

'Yes,' she whispered.

'Right, okay, I need you to stop working for a little while.'

Just as she was about to speak again, Ron moved back behind her and began to massage her shoulders and trapezius muscles, kneading gently.

Hermione felt as though she had died and gone to heaven, she said, 'Mm, feels good, Ron.'

Ron continued and Hermione tilted her head back to make eye contact with Ron to smile at him and he smiled at her in return.

'Thank you, Ron. You can knead a little harder, though.'

'Hermione, you're such an amazing person and friend, I reckon you should be pampered more often,' he said as he complied.

'Are you volunteering to do this pampering?' she asked.

'Yes, I am,' he replied.

'I could get used to this … when and where did you learn these skills?' she said closing her eyes.

'My family, of course, after rough games of Quidditch you tend to get the odd sore muscle, especially Charlie, he told me that knowing how to do this might come in useful one day.'

'Well, he was right,' she said.

After another five minutes he stopped and led her over to the settee by the fire. He told her to sit down. As she sat, Ron knelt down in front of her, facing her, then he picked up her left foot, removed her knee sock and began to gently massage her small foot.

Hermione was a little shocked at this but recovered and said, 'Don't tell me he made you do his feet, too?'

Ron chuckled and said, 'No, thank Merlin. I might not be alive if he had.'

Hermione laughed and Ron could not help but watch as he continued his ministrations before switching to her right foot. As he removed her knee sock, he could not help noticing how smooth her leg was. It simply fuelled his heart with even more desire for her.

'You're beautiful, Hermione,' he blurted out before he could stop himself.

'Y-you think so?' she said stunned.

'Yes, why, don't you think so, then?' he said kindly.

She shook her head and said, 'No, you're the only person other than my parents to say anything like that to me …'

'Well, we are right,' he said smugly.

'I'm not though … I mean look at me. My hair is awful and unmanageable, and my front teeth are too large, they make me look like a beaver,' she said dejectedly.

'Well, Hermione, I hate to break it to you, but you are wrong. I happen to like your hair, the way it's all out of control and conflicting with your personality. And as for your teeth, you could always ask Madam Pomfrey to shrink them,' he said in what he hoped was a kind tone of voice.

'I couldn't do that! My parents are Dentists, they don't think magic and teeth should be mixed, they would be upset with me!' she exclaimed.

'So what, they aren't the ones who are being called names because of them! Do it on Saturday before the Quidditch Final, I'll come with you, if you like?' he suggested.

'No, I can't do it, Ron,' she said sadly.

'I'm sorry. I just don't like it when people make fun of you. Look, either way, you look beautiful to me. I think you should at least think about it though.'

'All right, I'll think about it. I don't want to but I should get back to my homework,' she said regretfully as she was enjoying Ron's ministrations.

Ron nodded and watched as she stood up and walked back to her table to finish her work. As she walked, Ron, unable to stop himself, stared at her legs before snapping out of it in time to see her sit down again and say, 'Thank you, Ron, for everything.'

'You're welcome,' he said as he stood up again. He then walked up behind her once more and placed a kiss into her hair and said, 'Goodnight, Hermione.'

'Goodnight, Ron,' she replied.

Ron went to the boy's dormitory to go to bed. He used the bathroom to change into his pyjamas and made to go to bed, however, he found the other four boys with whom he shared the third year dorm room, standing in front of his bed.

'What?' he said sighing, having a good idea what they wanted.

'You and Granger looked cosy,' said Seamus, 'are you making your move? I don't blame you, she looks good.'

For once Ron mastered his temper and said, 'Hermione, her name is Hermione.'

'Aach, Ron, come on! Did you kiss her?' said Seamus eagerly.

'Yeah, did you?' said Dean.

'I don't see how that is any of your business, so sod off!' Ron said irritably.

'Oh, don't give us that blarney! Everyone knows the two of you fancy each other! Then again, she's so prim and proper you won't get much joy –'

'Shut it, Finnigan!' shouted Ron, Harry, and, to the other's surprise, Neville.

'Ooh, it sounds like Weasley has some competition!' said Seamus.

'What? No! No, she's like my sister, don't bloody go there!' said Harry quickly with a shudder.

'Neville, what about you?' said Seamus smirking.

'She's a good friend to me and that's it. Um, she kinda scares me a bit, actually … so lay off, all right?' he said honestly.

'Like I said, she does look good. Nice arse,' said Seamus.

'Seamus, you're really starting to piss me off, so do yourself a favour; shut up and fuck off to bed!' Ron said angrily.

'All right, all right, I'm going to bed, but you better do something soon or _I_ might,' he said with a swagger.

'Seamus, you can be such a bastard sometimes, do you know that?' said Harry, but Seamus ignored him.

'What a wanker,' said Ron.

'Ignore him, he knows you'd rip him in half if he did try something,' said Neville, 'You've always been really protective of her.'

'Only from people I don't trust or like,' Ron said getting into bed, 'goodnight, boys,' he said before closing his curtains.

It was a few hours later when Ron awoke suddenly. He sat up and tried to clear his head, thinking about the nightmare he had just had.

In the nightmare he had been down by the lake with Hermione when Seamus arrived and asked Hermione to go out with him. She said yes but then Seamus transformed into Sirius Black and he killed Hermione and Harry right before his eyes as he froze in terror.

He went to the bathroom and threw some water on his face and then, instead of going back to bed, he went down to the common room. When he opened the door he saw that Hermione was still at her desk. She had fallen asleep slumped over it. He briefly contemplated waking her, but decided against it. He did, however, have a better idea. He walked over to her and gently picked her up and carried her over to the same settee by the fire they had sat at earlier and laid her down upon it. He spotted a blanket and covered her with it. He didn't want some perverted git like Finnigan to try and look up her skirt. He then leant down and kissed her forehead and went to go back to bed, but before closing the door to the common room that separates it from the stairs, he turned to look back at the settee where she lay and whispered, 'I love you, Hermione,' then he closed the door behind him and went back to bed.


	3. The Right Time

_**A/N: This takes place in the chapter The Quidditch Final. This chapter contains an extract from said chapter.**_

Chapter Three: The Right Time

The next morning Ron was woken up by Harry telling him if he didn't move he would miss breakfast, so with a few well-chosen swear words he ran to the bathroom to dress for the day. He and Harry found Hermione waiting for them by the portrait hole, tapping her foot impatiently.

'Come on, you two, did you oversleep again, honestly!'

Ron walked over to her and took her bag for her and together they made their way to the Great Hall for breakfast. Just as they arrived, Hermione grabbed Ron's arm.

'Everything okay, Hermione?' asked Harry.

'Oh, I'm fine; I just need to talk to Ron for a moment,' she replied.

Harry left leaving Ron and Hermione alone.

'Thank you for last night, Ron,' she said softly.

'It was no trouble, Hermione, besides, you already thanked me,' he replied.

'I know I thanked you for the massage, but I need to thank you for putting me on the settee,' she whispered.

'Oh, um, sorry if I woke you,' he said quietly.

'You didn't wake me.'

'How did you know it was me?'

'Who else would?'

'Harry,' he suggested.

'Yes, but he's too scrawny to carry me.'

Ron chuckled and said, 'Yeah, you have a point there, and, it was no trouble, come on, let's eat.'

**The safety measures imposed on the students since Black's second break-in made it impossible for Harry, Ron and Hermione to go and visit Hagrid in the evenings. Their only chance of talking to him was during Care of Magical Creatures lessons.**

**He seemed numb with shock at the verdict.**

''**S all my fault. Got all tongue-tied. They was all sittin' there in black robes an' I kep' droppin' me notes and forgettin' all them dates yeh looked up fer me, Hermione. An' then Lucius Malfoy stood up an' said his bit, and the Committee jus' did exac'ly what he told 'em …'**

'**There's still the appeal!' said Ron fiercely. 'Don't give up yet, we're still working on it!'**

**They were walking back up to the castle with the rest of the class. Ahead they could see Malfoy, who was walking with Crabbe and Goyle, and kept looking back, laughing derisively.**

''**S no good, Ron,' said Hagrid sadly as they reached the castle steps. 'That Committee's in Lucius Malfoy's pocket. I'm jus' gonna make sure the rest o' Beaky's time is the happiest he's ever had. I owe him that …'**

**Hagrid turned round and hurried back towards his cabin, his face buried in his handkerchief.**

'**Look at him blubber!'**

**Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle had been standing just inside the castle doors, listening.**

'**Have you ever seen anything quite as pathetic?' said Malfoy. 'And he's supposed to be our teacher!'**

**Harry and Ron both made furious moves towards Malfoy, but Hermione got there first – SMACK!**

**She had slapped Malfoy around the face with all the strength she could muster. Malfoy staggered. Harry, Ron, Crabbe and Goyle stood flabbergasted as Hermione raised her hand again.**

'**Don't you **_**dare**_** call Hagrid pathetic, you foul – you evil –'**

'**Hermione!' said Ron weakly, and he tried to grab her hand as she swung it back.**

'**Get **_**off**_**, Ron!'**

**Hermione pulled out her wand. Malfoy stepped backwards. Crabbe and Goyle looked at him for instructions, thoroughly bewildered.**

'**C'mon,' Malfoy muttered and next moment, all three of them had disappeared into the passageway to the dungeons.**

'_**Hermione!'**_** Ron said again, sounding both stunned and impressed.**

'**Harry, you'd better beat him in the Quidditch final!' Hermione said shrilly. 'You just better had, because I can't stand it if Slytherin win!'**

Ron stood there looking at her and before he could stop himself he said, 'Hermione, will you be my girlfriend?'

'W-what?' she said shocked.

'I like you – a lot, and I was hoping that you like me, too,' Ron said looking at her.

'Yes, Ron, I do like you, _and _I would love to be your girlfriend,' she said beaming at him.

'Really?' he said faintly.

'Yes!' she said before Ron pulled her to him and hugged her, then began to spin them around, laughing. He then set her down on her feet and said, 'C-can I kiss you?' Hermione nodded and their lips met with a soft kiss.

Harry just watched the scene before him and said 'Come on, we're due in Charms.'

Ron and Hermione seemed to forget that he was there. They blushed deeply and said 'Sorry, Harry.'

Then, together, as Ron took Hermione's hand, they made their way to Charms.

The rest of their day passed by with no real excitement, unless you count Hermione walking out of Divination closely followed by Ron, both of them dropping the subject for good.


	4. News Travels Fast

Chapter Four: News Travels Fast

Despite the winning of the Quidditch Cup, Gryffindor Tower was fairly quiet. This was due in part to the End of Year Examinations which were due to begin and the distinct lack of bickering from Ron and Hermione. Harry had been quickly assured by Ron and Hermione that he would not be cast aside. In fact, the three of them had become closer as Harry told Ron that he thinks of Hermione as a sister and that if he hurt her, would hex him silly. Hermione had been touched at Harry's care for her that she cried and told Harry that she thought of him as her "little brother". The after party of the Quidditch Cup victory would be one that no-one who was present would ever forget, however, it was eventually broken up at two AM by a reluctant Professor McGonagall, who, being a huge Quidditch fan herself, could not help but be happy for her Lions and regretfully could not join in the celebrations with them.

Ron and Hermione had been subject to being teased by Fred and George, but Seamus had apologised to Ron for winding him up and for saying the things he did about Hermione so they were good. Hermione had been grabbed by her two stupid roommates; Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil and they had given her a very long and irritating interrogation that caused Hermione to threaten the pair with her wand, before finally being allowed to go to sleep.

It had been a few days since the Quidditch Final and Ron was waiting outside of the Ancient Runes classroom for Hermione to emerge. When she appeared, they smiled at one another, they embraced and Ron took the heavy bag from her shoulder and put it on his own before wrapping his arm around her shoulders as one of her arms wound up around his waist. Unfortunately, as they rounded a corner, they were met by Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle.

'Oh, look who it is, boys, it's the happy couple!' drawled Malfoy, 'Blood-traitor Weasley and his ugly, buck-toothed, Mudblood!'

Ron was livid but didn't move to hurt Malfoy physically, instead he said, 'Why don't you go fuck yourself, Malfoy!'

Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle walked away. Ron turned to see Hermione in tears. She said, 'What are you doing with me? You heard him! I'm ugly! Look at me! You can do so much better than me – hey!'

Ron had literally swept her off of her feet and began to carry her.

'Ron, please put me down!'

'No,' he said simply.

'Ron!'

'Are you finished? Hermione Granger, you are beautiful and brilliant and if anyone can do better, it's you! Now, be quiet and I will put you back down, but don't try to run from me, okay?'

'Okay,' she agreed and Ron put her back down. Hermione then realised where they had arrived. They were outside the Hospital Wing. Ron pulled on her hand and entered before sitting down on one of the beds as Madam Pomfrey bustled over.

'Mr Weasley and Miss Granger, I suppose you two have been up to something dangerous, again?' she said.

'Who, us?' said Ron smirking at the Matron, 'never, we like the quiet life, Madam Pomfrey.'

'Hmph, I'm not going to dignify that with a response, Mr Weasley. Now what can I do for you?'

'Hermione would like you to shrink her front teeth because she's fed up with all the flak she's taken over them since I've known her – which is a lot.'

'But Ron, I can't – my parents –'

'No, you need to do this. Do it for you! Your feelings and self-esteem are more important than their professional pride. Please, love, let Madam Pomfrey do this, you won't regret it,' he implored her. Hermione turned to the Matron and gave her a nod of consent. It took a matter of minutes as Ron bent down to pick up her old brace.

'What's this?' he asked.

'A brace, Dentists use them to help their patients straighten their teeth,' she replied.

'Barmy,' said Ron as he threw it into the dustbin. Hermione turned and smiled at him and his breath was caught.

'You were beautiful before, but now, you are absolutely gorgeous, Hermione,' he said with awe.

'You've got a good boyfriend there, Miss Granger, it's obvious he cares very deeply for you,' said Madam Pomfrey.

'Oh, I know, Madam Pomfrey, thank you so much,' said Hermione.

'You're welcome, dear.'

Ron and Hermione then left the Hospital Wing and made their way back to Gryffindor Tower. Hermione then said, as they arrived, 'I'm going to have to write home and tell my parents what I've done.'

'Are you going to tell them about us?' said Ron.

'Of course I am!' she said indignantly.

'Good – oh, crap! I've got to write home too. Though I suspect Ginny and the prat twins will have broken the news to Mum and Dad,' said Ron in mild panic.

After an evening of studying and snogging, they retired to their Dorms and wrote their letters home.

_Dear Mum and Dad,_

_Sorry it's been a while since my last letter, but things are getting hectic around here right now. _

_As I'm sure you've heard from either Ginny or the twins, I have a girlfriend, it's Hermione. Yep, that's right, Hermione Granger, the brightest witch of her age – maybe the age, is my girlfriend. Now before you worry, it's not interfering with our studies and, yes, I'm taking good care of her. I've never been this happy before, not even when the Chudley Cannons scraped that draw three years ago, but I still say they're going to turn things around any time now. _

_Harry is doing fine – he says hello, by the way, and he's not obsessing over Sirius Black. _

_The exams start soon and I'm reasonably confident, particularly about Defence considering we actually have a competent teacher who knows the subject. There's a good chance my Potions and Transfiguration exams will go well as I've been studying with Hermione (my girlfriend). _

_Anyway, hoping to stay out of trouble but you never know around here and what with being Harry Potter's best friend, anything could happen!_

_Love from Ron_

Ron shrugged before he put his letter in an envelope, sealing it and going to sleep.

_Dear Mum and Dad,_

_How are you? I'm fine and school is going well – really well in fact. The End of the Year Examinations will be starting soon and I'm reasonably confident – despite my workload._

_I have some very important news._

_One; I have a boyfriend, it's Ron. He's wonderful and he's been taking good care of me, and making sure I don't overwork myself. He's been an absolute gentleman. He does everything for me – even carrying my heavy schoolbag. I've never been this happy before. Our new relationship doesn't interfere with our studies, so don't worry. (You might want to look away here, Dad). Kissing is the most amazing thing in the world, why did no-one ever tell me before? But, my favourite part of the day is in the evening, the hour before bed, we're on the settee by the fire just holding each other, it's so romantic! When I'm in his arms I feel so safe, and, dare I say it – loved. I hope he can come over to the house in the summer because I'm going to miss him like crazy. Maybe, if it's all right, I can get Ron to ask his Dad about getting our house connected to the Floo Network so Ron can come over or talk to me. You can use the Floo like a telephone, too. Dad, you'll be able to introduce Ron to Football as it's the World Cup this summer – despite England failing to qualify!_

_Two; I did something else. Something about which I hope you won't be too upset? _

_After NINE years of insults, teasing and general bullying about them, I had Madam Pomfrey – the school nurse, shrink my front teeth. I did this for me. Ron and I were already together when I did it._

_I know you wanted me to continue with my brace, however, enough was enough. NINE years of school is approximately two thousand, six hundred and fifty-six days. Say, three or four insults a day, such as "beaver", "buck-tooth", well, I'm sure you get the idea, that's TEN THOUSAND times I've been insulted and mocked because of them. I apologise if this comes across as a rant, but I think if either of you had had to put up with all that, you would say enough is enough too. If you look at the second envelope I'm enclosing you'll see a photograph of Ron and I together. Please look at how I'm smiling; I've never been able to smile like that and much less for a photograph._

_Also, Harry told me that he thinks of me as a sister! So I told him that I think of him as my little brother, he was really pleased – we both were, so the three of us are even closer than before. Now if Harry could start seeing Ginny, Ron's younger sister, then it would be amazing! Imagine if Ron and I got married, and Harry and Ginny did too, we would all be related. But, I'm getting a little ahead of myself here. After all I think Harry likes this Ravenclaw girl called Cho. _

_As for Ron and I, well, I'm nearly fifteen and I KNOW Ron is the one. I just can't and won't imagine myself with anyone else. I love him. I haven't told him yet as it's too soon. I know you think I'm too young, but I defy anyone not to love someone when they defend your honour using a broken wand and spend the rest of the day burping up slugs!_

_Lots of love, _

_Hermione_

_PS: Please be happy that I'm happy._

Hermione then sealed the letter in the envelope, turned over and went to sleep


	5. Things Get Grim

_**A/N: This chapter contains an extract from the chapter; Professor Trelawney's Prediction.**_

Chapter Five: Things get Grim

Ron and Hermione had both received replies from their families and had been told everything would be taken care of before the summer holidays. Ron's father would arrange for Hermione's house to be connected to the Floo Network and make sure there was plenty of Floo Powder too.

It was now the last day of the exams and Harry, Ron and Hermione had just finished their penultimate exam; Defence Against the Dark Arts, and all three of them were reasonably confident of passing. But before any of them could speak, Harry spotted a familiar portly man with a lime green bowler at the top of the steps.

**Cornelius Fudge, sweating slightly in his pinstriped cloak, was standing there staring out at the grounds. He started at the sight of Harry.**

'**Hello there, Harry,' he said, 'Just had an exam, I expect? Nearly finished?'**

'**Yes,' said Harry. Hermione and Ron, not being on speaking terms with the Minister for Magic, hovered awkwardly in the background.**

'**Lovely day,' said Fudge, casting an eye over the lake. 'Pity … pity …'**

**He sighed deeply and looked down at Harry.**

'**I'm here on an unpleasant mission, Harry. The Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures required a witness to the execution of a mad Hippogriff. As I needed to visit Hogwarts to check on the Black situation, I was asked to step in.'**

'Execution?' said Harry, 'what about the appeal? We've worked really hard on that!' he finished indicating himself, Ron and Hermione.

'Y-you've been helping to clear the Hippogriff's name?' said Fudge curiously.

'Of course, Minister, we saw the whole thing. The first thing we were told was to never insult a Hippogriff. However, as Draco Malfoy was too busy trying to find a way mess up the lesson, he wasn't listening. As far as I'm concerned he got what he deserved as he called Buckbeak "An ugly great brute". No witness statements were taken, at least not from either of us, so the execution shouldn't be happening,' said Harry.

'Well, I see. I'm not sure what I can do …' said Fudge.

'Well, surely as the Minister for Magic, you have some powers …' said Harry cajolingly. 'Anyway, nice to see you again, Minister, we're going to lunch.'

Once lunch was over, Ron walked Hermione to her Muggle Studies exam.

'Y'know, I still think you're barmy for taking this subject,' said Ron.

'Well, like I said back in the summer, I thought it would be interesting to study Muggles from a Wizarding point of view.' she said.

'I'll take your word for it, love,' he said as they reached the classroom.

Hermione smiled at the endearment and said, 'Maybe you should take Muggle Studies next year?'

'No, I'd rather be taking Muggle-born Witch Studies – in particular; you,' said Ron.

Hermione laughed and said, 'Silly boy, what am I going to do with you?'

At that point Ron kissed her and wished her luck before she went into the exam. He went back to Gryffindor Tower, when he arrived he took a seat by the fire and began to think about the summer holidays. He knew that the Quidditch World Cup would be on and that there was a chance his dad could get tickets from work, hopefully he would be able to invite both Harry and Hermione to come to the Burrow to see the final, and spend the rest of the summer holidays there too. He didn't want to have to choose between his girlfriend and his best mate. He would do whatever it took to get them both there, even if he had to do Fred, George and Ginny's chores for the summer. He was so deep in thought, he neither noticed Hermione's return from her exam, or the Owl perched on the table beside him.

'Ron? Ron, are you there?' she said waving her hand in front of his face.

'Hmm?' he said breaking out of his thoughts, 'Oh, hi, Hermione, sorry, I was miles away,' he said as she sat beside him.

'Was it somewhere nice? Never mind, there's an owl – it's from Hagrid!' She then read the letter aloud.

'"_Dear Harry, Ron and Hermione,_

_We won! The Minister of Magic dismissed the case! _

_Beaky and me are celebrating and Dumbledore is going to come down and join us later._

_Thank you for all the help you gave us, I won't forget it._

_Hagrid"'_

'Yes, I can't believe it! Justice is done. I'd love to see Malfoy's ugly face when he finds out!' said Ron cheerfully.

'Harry will be pleased to know what happened, too,' said Hermione.

'Harry will be pleased to know what?' said Harry who had just returned from his Divination exam. Hermione passed Harry the letter from Hagrid and he read it before saying, 'Brilliant, I could do with a party, if only I still had the invisibility cloak …'

'Where is it?' asked Hermione.

'In the passageway under the one-eyed witch, but if Snape sees me near there again … I'm in serious trouble …' said Harry.

'That's true,' said Hermione getting to her feet, 'If he sees _you_ _… _how do you open the witch's hump again?'

'You-you tap it and say Dissendium,' said Harry. 'But –'

Hermione didn't wait for the rest of his sentence; she strode across the room, pulled the Fat Lady's portrait open and vanished from sight.

'I think you've had a bad influence on her, mate,' said Harry as Ron laughed.

Hermione returned a quarter of an hour later with the silvery cloak beneath her robes. Ron said, 'Have I told you lately how brilliant you are, Hermione?'

Hermione blushed.

After dinner in the Great Hall, Harry, Ron and Hermione snuck down to Hagrid's hut under the Invisibility cloak. After knocking and declaring themselves, Hagrid invited them inside.

'I dunno if yeh three being 'ere is a good idea – particularly yeh, Harry,' said Hagrid.

'Well I wouldn't be much of a friend if I didn't come down and offer my congratulations to you and Buckbeak; would I?' Harry replied.

The three of them took it in turns to bow to Buckbeak and each received a bow in return before patting him.

'Fancy a cuppa, then?' said Hagrid.

'I'll make it,' said Hermione.

Hagrid was about to speak until Hermione shrieked.

'You okay, Hermione?' said Ron.

'Yes, I-I don't believe it-it's _Scabbers!'_

Hermione then carried over a milk jug to the table and turned it upside down. With a frantic squeak, and much scrambling to get back inside, Scabbers the rat came sliding out on to the table.

'Scabbers!' said Ron blankly. 'Scabbers, what are you doing here?'

He grabbed the struggling rat and held him up to the light. Scabbers looked dreadful. He was thinner than ever, large tufts of his hair had fallen out leaving him with bald patches, and he writhed in Ron's hands as though desperate to free himself.

'It's okay, Scabbers!' said Ron. 'No cats! There's nothing here to hurt you!'

Hagrid suddenly stood up, his eyes fixed on the window. His normally ruddy face had gone the colour of parchment.

'Dumbledore's on 'is way down, yeh'd better go,' said Hagrid.

Without another word Hermione threw the cloak over herself, Ron and Harry, before they left by the back door as Ron stuffed Scabbers into his jacket pocket.

They made their way back up to the castle until Ron stopped dead. Hermione pleaded with Ron to keep moving. Ron continued to struggle with the rat until – 'Ouch! He bit me!' said Ron. Then Crookshanks appeared, Ron stuffed the rat back into his pocket and fastened the zip closed.

Then the biggest dog any of them had ever seen appeared and ran towards them. Harry and Hermione ducked as it jumped over them towards Ron and grabbed him by his ankle.

'AHH!' shouted Ron in pain as a distinct cracking noise was heard. Ron then felt himself being dragged, but to where he did not know as his eyes were closed due to the pain. The next thing he knew, he found himself in an ugly room with a bed. He slid over to the bed and heaved himself up on to it, holding his broken leg, wincing in agony.

'Fuck! Shit! Bloody dog!' he said; his voice raspy.

There was a chuckle from across the room and Ron looked up to see something truly shocking.

A tall man with long matted hair, filthy robes was pointing Ron's own wand at him.

It was Sirius Black.


	6. The Prisoner of Azkaban

Chapter Six: The Prisoner of Azkaban

Ron looked across at Sirius Black who was still chuckling at him. He could not help but wonder if the man had indeed lost his marbles. Also, it would not do to show fear.

However, Black spoke, 'Merlin's beard, Kiddo! You can swear with the best of 'em!' Black was grinning. 'I remember one time when James turned the air blue after a ... never mind,' he said with an air of sadness.

Ron swallowed and whilst trying to stand said, 'If you want to kill Harry, you'll have to kill me first!'

'Whoa there, Kiddo, take it easy, you'll damage that leg even more, sorry about that by the way. Not to mention, I'm not here to kill Harry, far from it, mate,' Black said soothingly.

To say Ron was shocked at Black's words would be an understatement, however, he remembered some of Hermione's advice, or pearls of wisdom as he called them, _"We have two ears, but only one mouth, so we should listen twice as much as we speak"._ Little things like that had helped him a lot in their relationship. Besides, he sensed that Black had something to say.

'You're not?' Ron said curiously.

'No,' said Black defiantly, then said, 'Say, do you have a name, I can't keep calling you "Kiddo", can I?'

'Ron Weasley.'

'Hmm, Weasley … Weasley, as in Arthur Weasley?'

'Yeah, do you know him?'

'Not personally. I knew of him by reputation and I bumped into him once at the Ministry. Nice bloke. I think it was in … August 'eighty-one, he had the biggest shit-eating grin on his face and he was shaking hands with practically everyone he met that day …'

Ron took a moment to think and he remembered, 'August 'eighty-one? That's when my baby sister was born! She was the first Weasley girl in at least seven generations.'

'Yeah, that would be why then,' said Black smiling. Then he changed tack by asking, 'You wouldn't happen to have your rat, would you? May I see him?'

Ron could not help being surprised at this question. Here was Sirius Black, the mass murderer, asking him, Ron Weasley, Harry Potter's best mate and the boyfriend of Hermione Granger, the brightest witch of the age, about a rat!

'Um, why?' asked Ron.

'I used to have one myself,' Black lied smoothly, 'Yours is missing a toe, isn't he?'

Ron found himself nodding at Black and he unzipped his jacket and pulled the struggling and squeaking rat from his pocket and held him out for Black to see. However, Black snatched the rat from him and then, using Ron's wand, he stunned the rat before waving the wand again as Ron sat dumbfounded as Scabbers transformed into a short, plump, balding man.

'Who the bloody hell is that?' Ron shouted, 'What the _fuck_ did you do to Scabbers?'

Black chuckled again and said, 'Your rat was no rat, he's an Animagus by the name of Peter Pettigrew.'

'What? No bloody way!'

'Look at him, Ron. You must have heard if you grew up in a Wizarding family that the biggest piece of him they could find was his finger. As you can see, it's missing. He's been alive all this time.'

Ron looked at the man who was laying there stunned and noticed the missing finger and said, 'What happened?'

'The little shit got away from me. I went after him because _he_ was the one who betrayed James and Lily to Voldemort. He was the Secret Keeper, not me. I suggested to James that we switch. I thought it was a perfect plan – a bluff. I never was much of a chess player … I was the decoy, nobody would guess that James would choose Peter to be the Secret Keeper, because I was James' best friend, I felt that they would surely come after me to get James and Lily's location ...'

Ron sat there thinking it over. It all made sense. After all, Pettigrew was lying right there, not to mention the strategist inside him thought it might've been a good idea too. Surely Black could not have known that Pettigrew would betray them. Ron met Black's eyes and nodded.

'I believe you, but convincing Harry won't be easy, though, but I'll help you.'

'Thanks.'

It was then that Ron heard them; Hermione and Harry, he whispered to Black, 'You'd better turn back into the dog again, because if Harry sees you right away, he'll go ape-shit and not listen to you.'

Sirius nodded and complied as he went and sat in the corner, just as they burst into the room.

'Ron!' cried Hermione, who threw her arms around his neck and kissed him in relief at finding him unharmed.

Harry gripped his shoulder and said, 'Okay, mate?'

'Yeah, just a broken leg, Pomfrey'll be able to fix it in no time,' Ron replied with bravado, as the dog in the corner watched the scene with a doggy grin on its face.

Harry then noticed the unconscious man on the floor and said, 'Who's that?'

Ron pulled Harry down to sit on the bed and said, 'Do you trust me?'

'Yes, of course I do,' was Harry's instant reply.

Ron looked over to the dog in the corner and nodded. Both Hermione and Harry followed Ron's gaze and watched as the dog transformed into the man who had haunted their dreams.

'To answer your question, Harry, his name is Peter Pettigrew.'

Harry could not believe it. Had Ron betrayed him? The idea was laughable but before he could speak, Hermione found her courage as well as her voice.

'Peter Pettigrew is dead! You killed him!'

'No, like I just told Ron here, he got away from me. He cut off his own finger, blew that street apart with his wand behind his back, transformed into a rat and bolted it into the sewers – where he belongs.'

'He's an Animagus?' said Hermione. 'He can't be; he isn't registered.'

'He's not the only one. I'm not registered and neither was James.'

The mention of his father's name jerked Harry into asking, 'What sort –'

He was cut off by Hermione who said, 'Why did you all become Animagi in the first place?'

'Perhaps I can answer that,' said a new voice from the door. It was Lupin.

'Professor?' said Hermione.

Lupin stepped into the room and saw Pettigrew lying stunned on the floor.

'So, have you killed him, Sirius?' said Lupin coolly.

'Oh, come on, Moony, you know me better than that!' said Black.

'Moony?' said Harry, 'Moony, as in Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs – The Marauder's Map?'

'You have our Map, Mini-Prongs?' said Black with amusement. 'Excellent!'

'That's right, Harry, we are Moony and Padfoot. Your Dad was Prongs, and Peter was Wormtail,' said Lupin.

'Don't call him that, Remus! He doesn't deserve his Marauder Name any longer, after he betrayed James and Lily!' said Black harshly. Then he began to retell the story he had told Ron and slowly it all made sense to Harry, Hermione and Lupin. Lupin then told them why they all became Animagi and that he was a Werewolf.

Ron stayed quiet in disbelief that a nice bloke like Lupin could be a werewolf; he had always been told they were savage, dark creatures.

Hermione, however, spoke, 'I knew it!'

'Since when?' asked Lupin curiously.

'Since Professor Snape set the essay,' she said.

'Did you check the Lunar chart and realise I was ill at the full moon? Or did you realise that the Boggart changed into the moon when it saw me?'

'Both,' said Hermione.

'Bloody hell, you would've given Lily a run for her money! She was the brightest witch in our year!' said Sirius. Then he spoke to Harry, 'I would never hurt you, Pup. The moment your Dad put you in my arms and asked me to be your godfather, I loved you as though you were my own son and I'll never stop.'

He opened his arms to Harry who had gone through almost every emotion possible, he stood up and hugged his godfather. Harry and Sirius both had tears in their eyes.

'Well, well, well, isn't this touching?' said a silky voice.

It was Snape. 'You three are out of bounds,' he said to Harry, Ron and Hermione. 'As for the two of you –'

'No! You're not going to make him go away or try and take him away!' said Harry standing between Sirius and Snape.

Snape was about to scold him but Lupin spoke instead, 'Severus: two things. One; why don't you cast your eyes over the man on the floor? Do you recognise him? And secondly; why did you come here?'

Snape cautiously moved into the room, keeping his wand and an eye on Sirius, he looked down in shock as he recognised him.

'It … can't be … Pettigrew, but how?' murmured Snape.

'It is him, Severus. He's been alive all this time, living as a rat. He betrayed Lily and James. Look at his left forearm,' said Lupin.

Snape did as Lupin suggested and said, 'The Dark Mark.'

Lupin turned to the trio and said, 'Every Death Eater had the Dark Mark burned permanently into their flesh so Voldemort could summon them to his side.'

'Death Eaters?' said Harry confused.

'It's what Voldemort's followers called themselves,' said Lupin.

Sirius then rolled up his sleeves to reveal dirty but unblemished forearms.

Snape's face was a mask, so Ron said, 'What do we do now?'

'Kill him,' said Sirius and Lupin.

'NO! You can't. If you kill him, the truth dies with him,' said Harry.

'You're the only one who has the right to decide,' said Sirius.

'We'll take him up to the castle, or, better yet, get Dumbledore down here,' said Harry thoughtfully.

Snape looked at Harry for a moment, grudgingly impressed at the boy's quick thinking. Then he turned to speak to Lupin, 'I came here because I saw you on that Map as I was delivering your potion.'

'Potion?' asked Sirius.

Hermione spoke again, 'Of course, you take the Wolfsbane Potion! It's a recent discovery that enables a werewolf to keep his mind when he transforms. But _only_ if it's taken –'

She was cut off by Sirius who shouted, 'Remus! You have to leave now! Go, straight into the forest, you don't have time to make it back to your office, GO, NOW!'

Remus immediately ran out of the Shrieking Shack as Snape waved his wand and something silvery appeared and glided out of the door.

'Was that a Patronus, Professor?' asked Harry.

'Yes, Potter,' replied Snape without his usual sneer, 'The Headmaster will join us shortly.'


	7. Freedom!

_**A/N: This is the Final chapter and may or may not contain a few words from the chapter; Owl Post Again.**_

Chapter Seven: Freedom!

As Harry, Ron, Hermione, Sirius and Snape waited for the Headmaster, Sirius pointed Ron's wand at his leg and said, 'Ferula.' Ron's leg had been bandaged tightly to a splint, 'I can't mend bones as well as Madam Pomfrey, but you should be okay with a field dressing for now …'

'Thanks, at least you aren't stupid enough to try, unlike that git, Lockhart …' replied Ron wincing slightly.

'Hmm, I sense a story here, do tell!' said Sirius.

'I had my arm broken by a Bludger during a Quidditch match last year, I still caught the snitch, but I passed out for a few minutes. When I came around, I was semi-blinded by a set of white teeth; Lockhart. He then offers to fix my arm, but despite my protests, he tried anyways. The brainless git says something like; _"Braccium Immendo!"_ the trouble was, he hadn't fixed my bones, he had removed them! Madam Pomfrey was livid and I had to take the most disgusting potion called Skele-Gro, and had to stay overnight in the Hospital Wing,' said Harry.

'Lockhart? Gilderoy Lockhart? I remember him he was a Slytherin a year behind your Dad and me. He had a thing for your Mum, but she just hexed him, I heard he barely knew one end of a wand from the other, so what was he doing at Hogwarts? Relearning first year spells?' said Sirius.

'No, he was the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher. He had written a load of books documenting all these great things he'd supposedly done, but Ron and I discovered he was a fraud. He basically went around finding the wizards who had done all the stuff in his books, getting the information from them, then he'd do a memory charm on them and hey presto; a new book would hit the shelves of Flourish and Blotts. We all had to buy them last year as they were set books and his idea of homework was composing poems about "his deeds",' said Harry.

'Shit! What the hell was Dumbledore thinking hiring him?' Sirius exclaimed.

'Well, he was the only applicant for the job that year,' replied Harry.

'Huh. Well, that's no excuse. Nobody would've been better than Lockhart. I take it the Defence job is still jinxed?' said Sirius.

'Yeah, that's the rumour,' said Ron.

'We've only had one decent teacher so far, and that's Professor Lupin,' said Harry.

It was at that moment the Headmaster arrived. He majestically cast his eyes around the room, the way only Albus Dumbledore could. He, of course, recognised Peter Pettigrew immediately, not to mention the fact that Harry and Sirius seemed to be joined at the hip as Sirius had his arm around Harry's shoulder laughing at the thought of Moony being a professor.

'Good evening to you all, there is an excellent explanation for all of this, I assume?' said Dumbledore.

Together, Harry, Ron and Sirius explained everything to Dumbledore and when they had finished, Dumbledore decided it would be a good idea to relocate to his office and summon someone the Ministry.

So, Sirius and Hermione helped Ron to his feet and began to support him as he stood, while Snape grabbed the still stunned Pettigrew by the scruff of his robes and began dragging him behind him as Harry and Dumbledore took the lead. However, as the group emerged from the Whomping Willow, it was not long before they were set upon by a hundred or more Dementors, but Harry and Dumbledore both with their wands outstretched cried,

'_EXPECTO PATRONUM!'_ and a silvery stag as well as a Phoenix appeared and sent the Dementors scattering.

'A stag?' said Harry, 'why a stag?'

'Your Dad was a stag when he transformed, it was also his Patronus,' said Sirius answering Harry's question. 'Who taught you how to do that? After all, it is well beyond Ordinary Wizarding Level.'

'Professor Lupin taught me after I was attacked by Dementors during a Quidditch game against Hufflepuff,' replied Harry. Sirius couldn't help at being proud of his godson and decided that whoever had the stupid idea of stationing Dementors around a school was going to get – at best, pranked into the next century.

'We really need to learn that spell, Hermione,' said Ron.

'Absolutely,' she replied.

Eventually they all arrived at Dumbledore's office. Hermione and Sirius helped Ron into a chair as Hermione sat beside him holding his hand. Snape tossed Pettigrew into chair and bound him to it. Harry took a seat next to Sirius.

'I shall summon Madam Bones, the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, and tell her to bring an Auror for Mr Pettigrew,' said Dumbledore. Harry and Hermione, who had never seen a Floo Call before, watched as Dumbledore made the call. It was ten minutes later when a woman with short grey hair wearing a monocle, emerged from the fireplace with a tall black Auror, who seemed imposing but greeted the Headmaster like an old friend just as Madam Bones had done.

'Evening, Albus. I hope I find you well?' she boomed.

'What she said,' said the Auror.

Dumbledore chuckled and said, 'I am very well, thank you, Amelia, Kingsley. I hope you are both in excellent health?'

'I'm fine,' they answered at the same time.

'Weird,' Ron murmured to Hermione who merely smiled back at him.

'How do you wish to proceed, Madam Bones?' enquired Dumbledore, but it was Sirius who answered,

'I'm willing to be interrogated with Veritaserum, if you prefer?'

'An excellent suggestion, Severus, do you have any at all?' said Dumbledore. Snape nodded and left the room for a short time, before returning with a small vial containing a colourless potion. Snape handed the bottle to Madam Bones who administered the correct amount required and began the interrogation.

'What is your full name?'

'Sirius Orion Black,' answered Sirius.

'Are you a Death Eater?'

'No.'

'Have you ever served He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named in any capacity?'

'No, I'd rather die.'

'Were you the Secret Keeper for James and Lily Potter?'

'No.'

'Who was?'

'Peter Pettigrew.'

'Please tell me exactly what happened.'

'It was my idea to change to Peter. I thought it was a perfect bluff. When I discovered what Peter had done, I chased him down, but before I could curse him, he began shouting that I had betrayed James and Lily for the whole street to hear. Then, with his wand behind his back, he blew up the street, cut off his own finger, before transforming into a rat and running into the sewers.'

'Why did you attempt to enter Gryffindor Tower on Halloween?'

'I tried to grab the rat. I saw a picture of Peter in The Daily Prophet sitting on a boy's shoulder. I recognised him immediately and decided to escape Azkaban to protect Harry. The article mentioned the boy would be at Hogwarts. Where Harry was.'

'How did you escape Azkaban in the first place?'

'I'm an Animagus. I never registered. The Dementors are blind and so I was able to slip past them as a dog.'

'Thank you, Mr Black.'

Madam Bones seemed satisfied at Sirius' testimony, and then she turned to revive Pettigrew to give him the truth serum.

'Your full name?' she asked.

'Peter Pettigrew.'

'Are you a Death Eater?'

'Yes.'

'Did you betray the whereabouts of James and Lily Potter to He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named when you were the Secret Keeper?'

'Yes.'

Madam Bones decided that was enough and had the antidote given to both men before giving her verdict.

'Mr Black, you have given your testimony in the presence of witnesses and under the influence of Veritaserum and I declare you to be a free man. You will need to present yourself to the Wizengamot to overturn your conviction.'

'I was never convicted by the Wizengamot as I wasn't given a trial. I was sent straight to prison by Barty Crouch,' said Sirius.

'I see. Well in that case, as you did not receive a trial, you will receive a full pardon, a full apology, reinstatement into the Aurors – if that is your wish, and a large compensatory amount of gold from the Ministry of Magic.'

'Thank you, Madam Bones.'

She turned to look once more at Peter Pettigrew and said, 'Peter Pettigrew, you will be remanded in custody to await trial for your crimes.'

The Auror named Kingsley seized Pettigrew by the arms tugging him to his feet and made to leave with Madam Bones who had already walked over to Dumbledore's fireplace. Then with a quick good-bye, they Flooed back to the Ministry.

'Wow, I can't believe it! You're free!' said Harry excitedly.

'Yep, thanks to you and your friends, Harry. Now, as your godfather, I was wandering if maybe you wanted a different home? I mean if you wanted to, you could live with me?' said Sirius. Harry could not believe his ears. Go and live with Sirius? Never see the Dursleys again?

'Yes! Have you got a house? When can I move in?' said Harry enthusiastically.

Before Sirius could reply, Dumbledore spoke, 'I am afraid that that is not possible.'

'What? I am his legal guardian, Dumbledore, not you!' Sirius said angrily.

'Sirius, please calm down and listen to me for a moment. Harry has very powerful protection while he stays at that house. I evoked some ancient magic that while he stays there, he is safe from Lord Voldemort and his followers. The good news is that Harry only needs to return there once a year and stay for a minimum of one full day. During this one day or so, you could keep him company in your dog form,' said Dumbledore.

Harry and Sirius decided the idea had merit, and so Harry would, unfortunately, go back to the Dursleys and just maybe have some fun at their expense.

'Excuse me, Professor, but can I _please_ go to the Hospital Wing, now?' said Ron.

0o0

Ron stayed in the Hospital Wing over the next couple of days with Hermione refusing to leave his side. The Daily Prophet had reported the news of Sirius' innocence and Pettigrew's guilt. Sirius had also received his compensation, as well as his wand from the Ministry. He had stayed at Hogwarts in his dog form to keep Harry company while Ron and Hermione were in the Hospital Wing, at least until the news had been broken. However, it was not all good news. Professor Lupin had resigned. Harry, Ron and Hermione had been sad to see him go. Lupin had given back the Marauder's Map and recovered Harry's invisibility cloak, too. It seemed that Lupin wanted Harry to have some fun discovering and exploring the castle's many shortcuts and secret passages.

A few days later, Peter Pettigrew escaped en route to Azkaban following his trial, but Sirius did not seem to care. He assured Harry that it was very unlikely that he would ever return, because not only would the Ministry hunt him down, Voldemort's old supporters would, too.

There was still a week left of school as Sirius found the trio relaxing down by the lake. He snuck up on them before shouting, 'BOO!'

All three of them jumped, and Sirius laughed.

'Bloody hell, Sirius!' yelled Ron.

'Language, Ron! Honestly, was that necessary, Sirius?' said Hermione calming herself.

'Yes, absolutely, it's the last week of school and there are pranks to be played!' replied Sirius gleefully.

'Not really in the pranking mood, Sirius. How was your trip?' said Harry.

Harry asked this question because Sirius had been trying to organise a few things for the summer, as well as visiting old friends. Today he had been to Gringott's.

'Everything went okay. I just claimed the Black Family Vault for my own and confirmed my status as the Heir of The Ancient and Most Noble House of Black – a load of bollocks if you ask me, but there you go. I also made a will naming you, Harry, as my heir,' Sirius replied.

'Me? Why?' asked Harry, shocked.

'Because, Harry, I am the last of the Blacks. My younger brother; Regulus, died years ago, and I don't have any children of my own. At least that I know of,' said Sirius. 'Anyway, I came to say cheerio for the time being, I'm still arranging somewhere to live, but I should have it taken care of by the time you finish this week. I absolutely refuse to live in my ancestral home as it's a shit-hole and I hate the bloody place. So, I'll be seeing you on platform nine and three quarters when you arrive back in London and I'll be in my dog form – Snuffles.'

'Right, okay. I'll see you then,' said Harry standing up to hug his godfather.

'All right, take care, Harry, and you two keep an eye on him for me and don't do anything I wouldn't do!'

Both Ron and Hermione blushed as Sirius left.

0o0

The end of term feast in the Great Hall had been one to remember. Gryffindor had won the House Cup, due, in part to Harry's role in winning the Quidditch Cup, and Dumbledore had also praised Harry, Ron and Hermione for uncovering the truth and clearing the name of an innocent man.

It was on the train home when Hermione told Ron and Harry about the Time-Turner and that she was dropping Muggle Studies, (despite passing the exam with three hundred and twenty per cent), to have a normal timetable next year. Ron and Hermione were also trying to get in as much snogging as possible before they arrived back in London. But the excitement did not end there when an Owl arrived for Harry from Sirius telling him that he had found them somewhere to live, that he had bought Harry the Firebolt and that Ron and Hermione could visit whenever they pleased and that Ron could keep the Owl as Sirius said it was his fault that he no longer had a rat. Ron held the Owl out for Crookshanks to sniff and the cat had purred, telling them that the tiny, crazy Owl was just that.

The train pulled into Platform nine and three quarters at last. Grabbing their trunks, the trio disembarked the train looking for Sirius and Professor Lupin. At last they found them, standing together, Lupin spotted them and waved them over.

'Hello, you three. Good journey? Well, this is Snuffles. Oh, and as I'm no longer your teacher, you can all call me Remus.'

Remus and Snuffles led the trio back through the barrier to the muggle world, where the Dursleys were waiting.

'Vernon Dursley?' said Remus, 'I am Remus Lupin. I would like to have a little word with you about Harry and about how he is treated in your house. Now, any more bad treatment of Harry will no longer be tolerated and it will have consequences. His godfather –'

'Godfather?' said Vernon, 'He doesn't have one!'

'– Will be most displeased if Harry is mistreated while in your care. It is to that end that Sirius wishes that this dog stays with Harry. He is extremely intelligent and well trained; also, I'd advise you to treat this dog as though he can understand every word you say. You are not to feed him dog food, either, normal human food only. Harry will be corresponding with his godfather, his friends and me. If neither of us hears from him, you will face very severe consequences. Are we clear?' said Remus as if there been no interruption.

'All right, you've made your ruddy point!' said Vernon rudely. 'Come along, Boy, and bring that mutt if you must!'

Snuffles growled menacingly at the Dursleys to make them pale.

'His name is Harry. I would suggest you use it from now on, as at least one of you provides plenty of edible flesh,' said Lupin.

'See you soon, Harry,' said Hermione giving him a hug.

'Yeah, I'll write about the World Cup,' said Ron shaking hands with Harry before leading Hermione over to where both of their parents were waiting.

Ron greeted his parents before he gave them a formal introduction.

'Mum, Dad, this is Hermione Granger, my girlfriend.' Both his parents smiled at them and took it in turns to warmly greet Hermione.

Hermione turned to her own parents and said, 'Mum, Dad, this is Ron Weasley, my boyfriend.'

Hermione's parents shared a chuckle with Ron's parents before shaking hands with Ron.

'Would you care to join us for dinner tomorrow night, Ron?' said Mrs Granger.

'Yes please, Mrs Granger, I would love to, thank you,' Ron replied.

'All right then, that's settled, Richard, why don't you take Hermione's trunk and you and I can put it in the boot?' said Mrs Granger, knowing that Hermione wanted to say goodbye to Ron properly. Mr Granger got the hint, took the trunk and led his wife to the car.

As soon as they were out of sight, Ron pulled Hermione into a slow, deep kiss full of love and promise. When they broke apart, Hermione's eyes were full of unshed tears.

'Hey, hey, please don't cry. I hate it when you cry,' said Ron soothingly.

'I'm sorry, it's just that I miss you already,' she said as a few tears leaked out.

Ron raised his hand to gently wipe her tears away with his thumb and said, 'I know, love, I'm already missing you too, but the good thing is you'll be able to Floo call me when you get home and I'll know you got there safely. Also, don't forget, I'll be over for dinner tomorrow night and hopefully we'll be able to get some alone time to snog, too. So, the quicker you go now, the quicker you'll be home and you'll be able to Floo me.'

'Hmm, I like the sound of that. I'd better go, my parents are waiting,' she said quietly, before sharing one last kiss with him before she left. Ron then turned to his family who had been watching, and together they left King's Cross Station for home.

_**A/N: That's it done at last! I had a lot of fun writing this and I hope I haven't butchered what was a good story in the series. Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to read, review positively and favourite this story, as well as put it on alert. But I do have a few reasons for writing this.**_

_**One; I didn't buy the fact they could not prove Sirius' innocence due to the trio being thought Confunded. Sirius never used Ron's wand except to Disarm Harry and Hermione, and a quick Prior Incantato would have proved that. Also I believe Wandless Confundus Charms are impossible – despite that scene in the HBP movie. Not to mention the fact that the trio could have submitted their memories and had them viewed in a Pensieve. Knowing I was going to change things, I had Harry grow a pair and actually tell Fudge what happened, because I didn't want Buckbeak to die either.**_

_**Two; on the blurb for the Bloomsbury kid's paperback for GOF, it says that Harry and Ron begin to notice girls. WHAT? I started noticing girls at EIGHT, not fourteen going on fifteen. I mean, bloody hell, I had my first crush and kiss at nine, my first love at ten and my second love at thirteen. Okay, admittedly my first love are the Oakland Raiders but it still counts. Their progress will always be my top priority, sorry ladies. Well, unless you're Emma Watson, Aliona Vilani, Eliza Dushku or Sarah Michelle Gellar. That's one of the reasons I had Ron and Hermione get together in my story.**_

_**Three; It all just wrote itself in my head, so I had to write it properly on paper and then post it with a few extra bits.**_

_**Harry, Ron and Hermione will return.**_


End file.
